


Dark Horse

by treya_barton



Series: Tainted Love [7]
Category: Persona 4
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Attempted Sexual Assault, F/M, Vampire Turning, firebombing of Tokyo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:07:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27017809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/treya_barton/pseuds/treya_barton
Summary: Rise reflects on her past relationship with Yu and how far he's come now that he's with Yosuke.As a warning, there is going to be depiction of an attempted sexual assault - I listed graphic depictions of violence for that reason although it's not really overly graphic.  There will also be a depiction of the firebombing of Tokyo and the resulting fire in case that would be triggering to anyone, especially based on current events this year.
Relationships: Hanamura Yosuke/Narukami Yu, Hanamura Yosuke/Persona 4 Protagonist, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji, Kujikawa Rise/Narukami Yu, Kujikawa Rise/Persona 4 Protagonist, Kujikawa Rise/Seta Souji
Series: Tainted Love [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1895857
Comments: 11
Kudos: 20





	1. Chapter 1

Rise swirled the vintage wine in her glass before wafting it under her nose, enjoying the faint raspberry scent of the Merlot before she dropped in the blood tablet. Across from her, Yosuke and Yu were perusing the cocktail menu. Yosuke was being rather indecisive, partially because he had spotted the prices of the drinks, and Yu was trying to suss out what it is he actually wanted so he could order it for him. No matter how many times he reminded Yosuke he was the one treating that night – and could readily afford it – Yosuke still felt uneasy about Yu spending the money. It was ironic since Rise had already heard stories about how he liked to treat his other friends all the time. Rise dropped in her blood tablet before taking a sip of the wine, and leaned her head on her hand as she watched the two of them talk.

They were leaning close together – closer than either of them probably realized, and it was like they had disappeared into their own little world. Yu was watching Yosuke’s slightly pouted lips with bemusement and his shoulders were more relaxed and his body language more open than she had seen in quite a long time. In fact, she had noticed a level of confidence in him as of late that she had not seen since the early years when they had first met. She took another sip of wine, her eyes warm as she watched her best friend interact with the man who was slowly healing whatever past trauma seemed to be haunting Yu to this day.

They had both invited Rise out for drinks as a way to thank her for her efforts in getting them together. Yosuke had initially wanted to cover it, but Yu had convinced him to allow him the honors since he knew how expensive Rise’s taste was. She had gone out of the country for work shortly after they had gotten together, so they were just now able to make good on their promise to treat her. Rise found herself reminiscing as she watched the other two, her mind drifting back to a time she rarely thought about these days with her exciting life and busy schedule. Sometimes it was good to reflect, she thought, and remember her roots. There was a time when Yu used to look at her with a similar gaze to the one he was now giving Yosuke, although she noted his current one was a bit softer and full of a little more affection; back when they first met, Yu had been kind but guarded due to his experiences prior to their meeting each other.

* * *

When Rise was a young girl, her parents sent her to live with her grandmother who happened to be the Okasan of an Okiya. Her parents were too busy to raise her, with her father a wealthy businessman always away on trips and her mother a socialite too busy entertaining guests. They had wanted a son, and Rise’s birth had been difficult on her mother who was not interested in going through the experience again. As a result, Rise was not wanted by her parents, and she was sent away to her grandmother to figure out what to do with her.

Rise didn’t mind, since she had always liked her grandmother better than her parents anyway. Her grandmother paid attention to her and encouraged her interests which included dancing and singing. Rise enjoyed living at the Okiya and would often sneak in to watch the hangyoku during their lessons as they learned to sing, dance, perform music and most importantly the art of conversation. The young women with their brightly colored clothes fascinated the young girl, and it wasn’t long until Rise began to ask if she couldn’t do the same as them?

So, Rise was then given the role of shikomi. She no longer referred to her grandmother as Sobo and instead learned to call her Okasan as the others at the Okiya did. She began to help run errands for the geisha and was allowed to start to participate in some of the lessons with the hangyoku. When she was lucky, she got to accompany them to their appointments, watching and learning as she saw the geisha and hangyoku use their skills during business meetings and company events.

It did not take her long to become a fully fledged hangyoku herself. Rise was definitely the star of her class, and everyone at the Okiya had high expectations for her career. They knew she would bring great revenue to the establishment, for she took to her training like a fish to water and brought joy to all she entertained. Her grandmother was especially proud of her, and she was happy to see her granddaughter finally blossom into a career that she enjoyed.

Right around the time Rise turned 20, just as she was preparing to become a full-fledged geisha which had been her dream ever since first coming to the Okiya, she was training at a teahouse. It was another company event, and one of the patrons she was entertaining had taken a fancy to her. He kept trying to hint at wanting to take things further, but she had politely side-stepped his advances all night. She was a hangyoku – not a prostitute – and he knew the rules of her profession.

She had just wrapped up for the evening and was preparing to head home when the man approached her again. Rise was nervous, especially once she realized they were both alone and the way he drunkenly leered at her. She tried her best to move away from him and leave to the safety of other company, but he blocked her from doing so and shoved her into a back room, closing the door behind them so no one would hear her scream.

That is when the nightmare began. The man tore at her clothes, trying to force her to comply to his desires, but Rise fought back, crying and shouting for help as she did her best to protect herself. Eventually the man grew frustrated and annoyed by the scratches and bites she had inflicted on him and his blows began to grow more violent. Rise began to black out, tears shedding from her eyes, her dreams slipping away as she began to feel numb from her injuries.

Then, a surprising savior came in the form of a man, another patron who was not part of the business meeting but often frequented the teahouse. He ripped her attacker off of her, snapping his neck, and moved toward her as Rise’s life slipped away. Her last thoughts before drifting off was a small thanks that at least he had tried to save her in the end, although he had been too late.

That is, until she was suddenly jolted awake by a searing heat running through her veins that seemed to originate from two pinpoints in her neck. Rise sat up abruptly, grasping at her neck and looking around wildly, suddenly overwhelmed by her senses which were sharper than ever before. She was able to see clearly in the dark storage space, watching with fascination as the man who had saved her attempted to hide the body as best as he could to buy them some time. She was inundated with smell, able to clearly distinguish the faint smell of decay starting to come from her attacker, along with smells coming from beyond the storage room, filtering all the way out from the street outside the tea house. She was also able to hear, hear the hustle and bustle outside, surrounding her and leaving her feeling dizzy with the cacophony of noise.

“What happened?” she asked, realizing that she somehow was no longer feeling any pain. Instead she felt stronger than she ever had in her life. She stood up, flexing her fingers and rolling up her sleeves to look at her arms which were surprisingly blemish free. She began fixing her kimono and her hair as she looked at her savior. He seemed to be struggling with what to say.

“Have you ever heard of the Nure-onna?” he asked, standing up and dusting off his pants from where he had been crouching on the floor after carefully hiding the man’s body behind some of the cleaning supplies.

Rise tilted her head. She knew a bit about folklore, and vaguely remembered hearing about this one. “A woman who feeds on human blood?” she asked.

He nodded. “That story is a myth with a kernel of truth,” he explained. “You will no longer be able to live the life you do currently. You must avoid sunlight and find those willing to let you feed on their blood, or risk falling into bloodlust and losing yourself to hunger.”

Rise’s eyes widened. “What are you saying?” she asked.

“What I’m saying is you’re a vampire now,” he explained. Vampire was a word unfamiliar to Rise – it would be several more years until the legends were introduced into Japanese culture. “You’re a predator – strong and fierce. No one will be able to hurt you again like this man tried to today. However, it comes at a price. You cannot let sunlight touch your skin – it will burn. And you must feast on blood or risk allowing your hunger to override your humanity.”

He then started to open the door. Rise desperately grabbed at his yukata. “Wait,” she said, as he turned to look at her. “You tell me all that and then leave?”

“I don’t want to still be here when this man’s body gets discovered,” he explained. “I saved you from dying – it is up to you to figure out what to do with this second chance at life.” He then pulled away and disappeared into the night, leaving Rise in a daze. What he had told her was hard to believe, but she couldn’t deny the strange circumstances. She certainly felt different, and his strength and speed seemed to be otherworldly. She was also starting to feel hunger pains and as she headed out onto the street she realized that one thing she heard distinctly was the sound of the heartbeats of those around her.

Rise hurried back to the Okiya, locking herself into her small room. Normally she would have had to share with the other hangyoku, but one small benefit her grandmother had allowed her was a space she could call her own. Rise made sure to block the window to allow no sunlight in, and practiced a cough and raspy voice in order to pretend to be sick. She then waited for morning, when someone would eventually rap on her door when she didn’t show up for class.

She played the part of an invalid with ease, stating she had started to feel unwell last night after working at the tea house, and that she didn’t want to allow anyone else to become sick. She was left alone after that, and Rise used the solitude to craft a letter to leave her grandmother, thanking her for taking her in and her steady patience while apologizing for leaving her.

Once Rise was finished with the letter, she looked around the small room she had called home, and felt sorrow over the fact she would have to leave the Okiya – her family – behind. Her dreams to one day become a geisha, capturing the hearts and attention of all she entertained, were no more. Rise held back tears before she slowly began to pack away a few items, a few simple yukata along with her favorite kimono that her grandmother had gifted her for her birthday last year.

Once she had put together a satchel of the few items she would be bringing with her, she waited for dusk to fall, trying to ignore the fact that she was starving and as the day moved on she found her senses beginning to grow sharper as her nose desperately searched for any sign of blood. She clenched her jaw, and as soon as it was safe to do so she slipped out, leaving her life behind in order to protect the ones she held dear. As Rise left, saying a silent goodbye to her grandmother, she wondered what she would be able to do next. She didn’t want to drink anyone else’s blood and as a hangyoku she did not have any money. The Okiya had taken care of her – it wasn’t until she was a geisha that she would be able to receive a portion of the funds she drew to the establishment.

Thus, she wasn’t sure what she would use as a shelter when dawn arrived. The man who had saved her may have saved her life, but he certainly hadn’t provided her many options for the new one he had given her. Rise clutched her satchel and kept her head down as she walked, trying to ignore her growing hunger and steeling herself from how her body reacted to the crowd around her. All she could hear were heartbeats, all she could taste was copper as she visualized her teeth sinking into flesh. Rise closed her eyes to try to shut out the sensations, and as a result she did not pay attention to where she was going. She ended up running into someone, someone solid, who had a gentle scent that soothed her senses, temporarily numbing the feeling of hunger that had washed over her.

She looked up into a pair of calm gray eyes that were steady as they gazed back. “You must be the fledgling I smelled,” he murmured to himself.

“The what?” Rise asked.

He pulled her away from the busy street, not far enough away where she would feel uncomfortable, but enough to where she wasn’t overwhelmed by the scents and sound. That’s when she realized something. The man she was with didn’t have a heartbeat, at least not one as strong as a normal human. She could somehow sense that he was like her, only more in control. He must also be a vampire. “I was investigating a body that had been found in a local tea house. I could tell it was the work of a vampire, although the man had been killed without being bitten. I had smelled blood, however, and realized that someone had probably been turned. I assume that must be you,” he explained.

Rise slowly nodded her head. “The man who was killed was attacking me. I was dying and the man who protected me from my attacker…did something. He gave me a few warnings and then left.”

The stranger was dressed in a simple yukata and had silver eyes and hair although he appeared to be around her age, and he let out a small sigh. “That is the way of most of our kind, unfortunately.” He then bowed. “My name is Narukami Yu,” he greeted her.

Rise bowed back. “Kujikawa Rise,” she replied. “Will you…help me?” she asked, eyes staring at him hopefully.

“That was my intention,” he replied. “I was looking for you – I figured you would probably be having a difficult time. Being a fledgling is hard, although you do learn to control your urges.” He glanced over her, with her thick hair pulled up into a bun. Even though she was wearing a simple yukata, she carried herself with a grace that belied her profession. “First, let’s get you fed.”

Yu took her to the pleasure district, bringing her to a house that catered to vampires with people willing to allow their patrons to feed on their blood. He explained that vampires like him only subsisted on blood willingly given or on blood of those who had done wrong, like the man who had attacked her. He then took her back to his apartment, which had all of the windows and any cracks completely covered to protect them from the morning light. There, he taught her more about their kind and the life that she would be leading now.

Over the coming weeks, he began to teach her how to use her skills to her advantage, and how to control her urges. He taught her how to hunt criminals for times where she may be desperate for blood and unable to get it from one willing to give it freely. While he taught her, he made reference to the woman who had trained him, someone who just like he was to her had taken him in shortly after he had been turned, stopping him from falling into a blood frenzy as so many fledglings tended to.

Yu was strong and confident, and had readily adapted to his new lifestyle. He did not speak much about his own past – Rise couldn’t blame him since she was still troubled by the loss of her own – but was always willing to listen to her troubles. He was patient and kind to her, and never had any expectations like the men she was used to dealing with in her professional life. He saw her as a person and always treated her with respect, and it did not take long for Rise to begin to grow feelings for him. Rise had never really been interested in a man before – the ones she was around in her work were generally much older businessmen and not anyone around her own age – so in a sense he became her first love.

Yu ended up taking on a job doing manual labor at night in order to provide income, while Rise took on a job in the red light district, becoming a hostess and using her skills she had picked up through her years of training to become one of the most sought after at the establishment. The work paid well and allowed her to feed from clients who enjoyed the aphrodisiac effects of her bites and gained a fetish for it. She was not entirely sure how Yu managed to stay fed – how much of it was from stalking criminals and how much from willing participants – and while the idea of him going to a pleasure house bothered her a little, she knew that their bond was stronger than any connection he had with the other women, and she knew that at the end of the day he would return to her side.

After a few months of getting used to her new life, things started to change. Japan had already been embroiled in WWII, but after Japan declared war on the US in the form of the attack on Pearl Harbor, things had really started to ramp up. Last month there had been two air raid attacks on Tokyo, and while they had not hit the district in which Rise and Yu lived and worked, they were enough to cause them concern. Parts of the city had been heavily damaged by the fires caused by the bombs, leaving people homeless. Without adequate shelter, Rise and Yu would not be able to survive during the day so they had been trying to formulate a plan just in case anything like that happened.

It was the beginning of March, which was usually ramping up to the most beautiful time of year in Tokyo. The sakura were blooming, and while they wouldn’t be able to see them during the day, they still looked pretty lit up at night, and in fact looked even more surreal. Rise was planning on dragging Yu out for a nighttime hanami on one of their nights off, and she was highly considering finally confessing her feelings to him. She wondered how he would react, and as she was working that night she could not help but feel nervous about finally being open about how she felt about him. She hoped, based on little indicators she had noticed, like how she had caught him staring at her when he thought she wasn’t looking, that maybe he returned them and saw her more than as a sister or a good friend.

However, her plan that she had been working on since the beginning of the year, was not meant to be. That night would go down in history as the most destructive single air attack in human history. As Rise was busy at work, she heard a faint whistling sound from outside that grew steadily closer. Moments later, the ground shook and everyone was able to hear the distant sound of the explosion, which caused the nightclub to immediately fall into pandemonium as the patrons and workers rushed to evacuate the building and head outside to see what was going on.

There were more whistling sounds and more booming explosions as Rise joined the crowd outside, covering her ears which were ringing due to how much louder the explosion was to her hearing. She looked out in horror as she realized the night sky had taken on a red hue as parts of the city had lit in flame, causing a haze of smoke to fill the air filled with the acrid smell of burning flesh. Rise’s eyes watered and she began to cough, but she was reluctant to pull her hands away from her ears due to how deafening the sound was. She watched in horror as another bomb began to drop much closer to the street where she worked, and she shouted at the others to run away as she used her superhuman speed to get as far away as she could, although it wasn’t quite far enough. When the bomb dropped, she was still close enough to get knocked over by the blast, and she slid across the ground after being knocked prone. Rise had the air knock out of her lungs along with some minor cuts and scrapes that she knew would heal pretty quickly. She slowly got back up, looking around her and realizing that many other people were in much worse shape.

She glanced around the street, trying to get a sense of where she was in relation to the apartment she shared with Yu, and her eyes widened when she realized the direction that they lived in appeared to be one of the areas covered in flames. She rushed toward it, choosing to cover her mouth with her hand now that the smoke was thicker, until she could move forward no more due to the heat of the fire. She managed to spot what remained of their apartment building, and felt sick as she watched it become consumed in the spreading fire. Most of Tokyo consisted of wooden buildings, so the fires were spreading rapidly from the points where the bombs full of napalm had dropped. Rise felt tears form in her eyes, both due to her situation and due to the heavy smoke. That’s when it hit her. Yu worked pretty close to where they lived.

“Yu!” she started to shout, moving away from the flames as she ran toward the street where he worked. “Yu!” Worry filled her as she ran, faster than she ever had before, even during their training sessions, and she began to feel ill. She didn’t know what she would do if she lost him. Moments later, she began to hear a distant shout, and relief flooded her as she realized it was her name. Yu was rushing toward her, face and clothes covered in ash, but otherwise looking no worse for wear.

Once he reached her, Yu picked her up and crushed her in a hug, and she could feel his relief upon seeing she was ok. It was the same exact relief she felt upon realizing the same. “I was so scared,” he breathed, and Rise wrapped her arms around his neck before burying her face in his shoulder.

“Our home…” she said, tears streaming down her cheeks, and he began to run a comforting hand through her hair.

“I know,” he said softly. They heard another bomb begin to fall nearby, and Yu who was even faster than she was dashed away to get them to safety. “I think we need to get as far away from here as we can,” he said, staring up through the flames and hazy smoke to see the outline of the planes flying overhead. “Maybe if we get further out in the city we can escape this horrid air raid. I think it’ll go faster if I carry you – is that ok?”

Rise nodded, before adjusting herself so she was comfortably resting on his back instead. Yu held her steadily in place before taking off, able to run a long distance at an easy pace due to his stamina. Rise couldn’t help but be a bit jealous over it. Yu seemed stronger than the other vampires they occasionally encountered, and she wondered if she would ever be able to catch up to him. Once they were far enough away from the main chaos, entering quieter neighborhoods that were not being attacked but had terrified residents watching as other parts of their city burned before their eyes, Rise and Yu began to look for a shelter until they could find a new place to stay. They ended up finally stumbling upon an old shrine, and they found a space they could crawl into that looked like it would completely shelter them from the sunlight in the morning. They huddled together, clinging to each other as they tried to process what they had just been through.

The next night was a repeat of the same terror, only this time they were far enough in the outskirts that they were safe from the main events and merely watched it in horror from afar as more of the city burned. Many people died over the course of those two nights, and even more such as Yu and Rise lost their homes and had no place to go. Once it was morning again, and Yu and Rise again huddled together in the old shrine that didn’t seem to have anyone looking after it anymore, Rise decided to finally confess her feelings to Yu. It wasn’t under the branches of a cherry blossom tree – they were both still covered in soot and ash and she wasn’t sure when they would find a new place to stay or clean off – but after what she had experienced, she didn’t want something to happen to them and be left with regrets.

To her relief, once she had finally voiced what she had been holding in her heart for so long, Yu had readily accepted her feelings and even reciprocated them. Their first kiss was awkward, with their lips dry from the fire and their clothes smelling like smoke, but Rise couldn’t help but still feel like her heart would burst. Even though she had lost everything again – she would later find out that that the Okiya where she had been raised had been lost in the flames with her grandmother being one of the many who died in the attacks – she had Yu and felt like with him by her side things would be alright. They had learned to live with their affliction, and would be able to rebuild and start a new life together. Rise couldn’t help but feel hopeful, even if it would take a long time for the city she loved to rebuild as well.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything seems to be going well for Rise and Yu until one day Yu disappears, returning home a changed man.

Rise stirred from her meditative state and stretched, smiling as she felt the protective hold of her lover wrapped around her. She turned around, eyes sweeping across his face, always more relaxed during meditation than when alert, and reached out with a hand to wipe his silky silver locks from his face. One eye slid open at the touch, and a small smile formed at Yu’s face upon seeing her gaze. It was still daylight, so there really was no reason for her to get up; she still had a few hours before she would have to get ready for work.

“Did I wake you, darling?” she asked, and Yu shook his head before snuggling closer. Rise never felt safer than in his arms, and she leaned into his hold.

“Why are you up?” he asked, and she shook her head. She had been deep in meditation and something had suddenly shifted her out of it – no doubt it was one of their neighbors or some of the construction going on outside. Once the war had ended, they had finally moved back to Tokyo which was in the process of rebuilding. 

She decided to take advantage of the situation and quickly flipped on top of him, smiling catlike at him as he blinked in surprise at the sudden change of events before an expectant style graced his lips. Rise smiled back, a coy grin as she ran a finger along his bare chest. “We have some time before there’s anywhere we need to be. Why not take advantage of it?” she asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Yu leaned forward, capturing her lips and pulling her down as she giggled at his impatience. Although Yu could be needy, he was always gentle with her, and he had never once made her feel uncomfortable. He always saw to it that she was fully satisfied, and while she knew she did the same, there was always a niggling thought in the back of her head that wondered if what she provided was good enough for the other man. He just seemed so perfect, and while she was usually pretty confident, something about Yu always left her feeling shy.

Once they had finished thoroughly ravishing each other, Rise pulled away in order to get prepared for the night. She grabbed her things in order to go to the local bathhouse to clean up, while Yu, with his hair still tousled from their romp in bed, went to go grab his uniform. He was currently working as a laborer at night and helping with the rebuild of the city. It was hard work, but with Yu’s strength and stamina it hardly winded him. Rise couldn’t help but feel like the job was a waste of Yu’s talents – he was highly intelligent, and she knew he could do so much more than be a simple laborer, but jobs like that were difficult to do at night, if at all. She had been trying to convince him to become a doctor, pointing out he could work at night – but he had merely smiled before telling her patiently that he enjoyed his work and was happy to help rebuild the city. It also gave him the opportunity to swing by to see her at her job when he got off, due to his work only being part time.

Rise, once they returned to Tokyo, had started performing at a night club and had become pretty popular. She had even been approached with the idea of recording an album and possibly even going on tour to perform at other venues. Rise was certainly flattered and excited at the idea, and in a few days she would actually be performing a full set in front of an executive at a label in order to see if she would gain his approval. She had excitedly asked Yu to come to the performance, and he had taken the day off so he could be there to support her.

Rise smiled as she washed up at the bathhouse, rising herself off before heading to large bath in order to soak. The hot water did wonders for her skin, allowing her to practically glow on stage, and she always made sure to use the bath whenever she had a performance. She hummed to herself as she relaxed, and she thought through which outfit she would wear to sing in that evening. She loved the glitz and glamour of the Western style stage outfits that she wore and had fun picking out the accessories to wear. It was like she was able to relive her dream, still getting to perform albeit in a different setting, and between that and her relationship with Yu she was finally truly happy.

When she returned from the bathhouse, she was surprised to see that Yu wasn’t there, and even more so when she realized he had left his uniform behind. It wasn’t like Yu to skip out on work, so she couldn’t help but feel a bit troubled by his odd behavior. She frowned as she headed to work, changing into her dress backstage, a champagne colored dress that was floor length and form fitting and glimmered in the stage lighting. She curled her hair before throwing on a floor length feathered boa, winking at her appearance before slipping it off as she started on her makeup. The end result was that she looked stunning, and she did her best not to think of Yu as she headed out on stage and started her first number for the night. She always felt alive as she performed before the audience, watched as they were carried away by her song and performance, and she allowed herself to get lost in the performance and allow her worry to slip away.

Once she was finished for the night, she changed back into her normal attire before collecting her wages and hurrying home before the sun rose. When she arrived, she paused outside before covering her nose in surprise. Inside, she could distinctly smell the stench of blood and death, and she could not help but gag reflexively before pulling out her handkerchief to hold over her nose. It was perfumed and helped block the scent, but unfortunately her nose was too strong to fully mask it. 

When she stepped inside, she was faced with a horrifying sight. Yu was curled up on the ground, vomit on the floor next to him, his clothes covered in blood spatter. Rise quickly shut the door behind her before rushing over, only stopping when Yu flinched away and curled in on himself. “What happened?” she asked, her heart clenching. Yu was sweating and looked pale and clammy like he was sick. His eyes were feverish with bloodlust, but she could tell he had not had any to drink. None of the blood smelled like his own, and in fact it smelled like it came from a variety of people, but the spatter was too small to appear to have been the result of anything he had done. It was like he had been in the room when someone else had been attacked, and Rise wondered where Yu had gotten to that night. There was the faint smell of another vampire on him, but she wasn’t aware of him having attachments to any others than herself.

Yu had clammed up and was refusing to look at her. His breathing was uneven and he was beginning to shake, and Rise could not help but feel her heart break upon seeing someone so strong reduced to this state. She reached down, frowning when Yu flinched away from her again, but forced herself to hoist him up even as he tried to pull away. “Let’s get you out of these clothes,” she said soothingly, as she led him into their bedroom. She tore his clothes away, already deciding she would burn them, before wiping away the sweat from his damp skin with some hot water and soap and gently changing him into his sleep clothes. Yu remained still, gaze hollow as if he wasn’t even seeing her, and once she was done he collapsed on the bed and once again curled up into a ball.

Rise stepped outside of the room, taking his clothes with her in order to get rid of them, before staring down at the blood that had been tracked in on the floor while trying her best not to break into tears. She felt overwhelmed but didn’t know what to do, especially with Yu so numb and out of it. She resigned herself to cleaning up the mess, before checking in on Yu to see how he was doing. He hadn’t moved at all, and did not seem like he would be stirring anytime soon, so she headed to their kitchen table and sat down to organize her thoughts.

She would have to take care of him, she decided, which probably meant calling out of work for awhile. Her heart clenched, remembering her opportunity in a few days, but taking care of Yu meant more to her than that. Thus, she made the call to her boss, explaining that her boyfriend had fallen ill and she would need to stay home for awhile, eyes closing with regret as her manager tried to talk her out of it, explaining what a bind it put the night club in and reminding her of her opportunity. She insisted, however, and said she would let him know once she was able to return to work again.

By this point it was daylight outside, so Rise would have to wait before she was able to figure out how she would get Yu to feed that night. She was getting a bit famished herself – it had been a few days since she had last fed – and she tried not to allow herself to feel too upset about her situation. Yu had always been a steady presence in her life, and now it was her turn to do the same for him.

Taking care of Yu in this catatonic state wasn’t easy. He was completely listless and unresponsive, and no matter what she tried he didn’t seem to hear her. It took her days to get him to feed – she tried to get him to come out with her, and when he stubbornly refused she finally brought someone home, although the idea of drinking their blood, even willingly given, seemed to disgust him. Over time, he seemed to be less numb and more responsive, starting to notice her there and appearing guilty over her care of him, but even then he refused to talk about whatever had happened. He announced he was giving up on their vampire lifestyle, and he began to fall out of practice, only going to feed when absolutely necessary and being listless otherwise.

Rise wasn’t entirely sure what to do with him in this state, and they began to fall prone to arguments as she tried to get him to do something – anything – and he tried to push her away. It was obvious he felt guilt-ridden over her being there and taking care of him, and finally during one argument he snapped at her to return to performing and to leave him alone.

So, Rise listened. Not long after that, she moved out into her own place. She returned to work and continued to pay for Yu’s place while occasionally checking in on him to make sure he’s still eating and alive. However, she gave him much needed distance for both of their sakes and maintained a distance. Not long afterward, she officially broke up up with him, although it broke her heart to do it. Yu was no longer the same man she had fallen in love with, and while she still cared for him – was still his friend – being with him and taking care of him was draining and hard on her. They also had opposing views now – Rise still embraced her lifestyle as a vampire, and she couldn’t understand his abrupt change in views all of a sudden.

Yu had seemed shocked by the breakup, but he had quietly accepted it, and for a few months after that she didn’t hear from him. He finally moved out, without telling her where he was going. She knew he was depressed, and while it worried her, she also realized she had her own life to live and needed to take care of herself as well. She hadn’t been during those months she dedicated all of her time to him, and although she had missed her opportunity to get the record deal, she was fortunate enough to get a second one and was finally in the process of recording her first album. Rise had a lot going for her, and while she often thought about Yu and felt guilty about leaving him, she tried not to let it keep her from accomplishing her own goals.

One day, out of the blue, when she had released her first album and was in the process of planning her first night club tour, she was surprised by Yu’s return. He looked better than he had the last time she had seen him, although there was a gloominess to him that proved he had not returned to his old self. “I wanted to apologize to you,” he said after she had ushered him inside.

“There’s nothing for you to apologize for,” she protested, and he shook his head.

“Rise, you know that’s not true,” he replied. Her heart clenched upon hearing him say her name again, even if it lacked the warmth it once did. “You sacrificed a lot for me – once I started to return to myself, I remembered your opportunity that you gave up to take care of me. And I did nothing to deserve such care.” He took a deep breath and let it out, before looking at her. “I am not the same person I once was. I don’t think I ever could be. But, I would like to be your friend again. If you’ll have me.”

Rise felt tears at his admission, and at his remorseful, yet hopeful expression. It meant a lot to see Yu able to be recovered enough to talk to her again, to ask for such a thing, and she couldn’t help but feel relieved that while he wasn’t the same person, he seemed to have at least started to get better. “Of course, darling,” she choked out, and Yu hesitatingly reached out before giving her a brief hug. There was a level of distance that hadn’t been there before, and he did not hold her for very long, but it still gave her comfort.

“I got a job teaching chemistry at the university near our old place,” Yu said. “The job allows me full access to the lab so in my spare time I am able to work on research. I am trying to find a way to allow us to feed without having to rely on blood – to find an artificial source,” he admitted. “I teach night classes – I thought you’d like that.”

Rise smiled at him. “I do. I think it suits you,” she admitted. “And I do think you’ll be able to figure it out,” she added. “It would be nice not having to figure out how to feed all the time.”

He smiled at her, looking as if he had a weight off of his shoulders, and from that day forward they would check in on each other and occasionally meet up. Yu did end up inventing the blood tablet, something that allowed more freedom to vampires, especially those like him that preferred to live more like humans and abhorred drinking blood. Rise still enjoyed the practice – it allowed her to maintain her strength and she didn’t see the problem with it when willingly given – but admitted it was convenient to have when a craving hit and she wasn’t near one of her contacts.

Over time, Rise’s attachment to Yu transformed into one that was more familial, and as her career continued and she found herself attracted to different people, she began to wonder about when her best friend would do the same. Yu did occasionally see someone here or there but it never seemed to last long, and each time she tried to hook him up with someone it always seemed to end in disaster. Which is why she was so happy he had found someone all on his own.

* * *

Suddenly, a familiar song began to play, and Rise’s face widened into a smile. It was one of her old songs from the 50s that had been recently been remade by a current artist named Kanami. This version was more upbeat than her own, more soulful version had been, but she quite enjoyed it all the same. It was always funny when people compared photos of her back then to her now as a model – it was a running joke on variety shows that Rise was the reincarnation of Tsuya, the name that she had used when performing at the night clubs. It had been her grandmothers name and she had adopted it in her memory.

Rise’s smile grew brighter, and she stood up abruptly, capturing Yu and Yosuke’s attention. They had finally ordered their drinks and were waiting for them to arrive. “Dance with me,” Rise said, grabbing Yosuke’s hands and dragging him next to the bar where there was an open space. Yosuke’s eyes widened in surprise as he was dragged away, and she could feel Yu’s disgruntled glare at her back over her dragging his boyfriend away.

Rise merely winked at him before pulling Yosuke into a dance, and to her delight he soon relaxed and joined in, appearing to enjoy it while surprising her over how well he moved. She had not expected the detective to be a dancer, and was quite pleasantly surprised. “Maybe after this we should go to a nightclub,” she suggested, and Yosuke flushed lightly at the idea. “I have been trying to convince Yu to bring you out sometime, but he wants to keep you all to himself,” she pouted.

He really flushed at that. “I can’t imagine anyone saying no to you,” he confessed, and her eyes glittered mischievously.

“While he says no to me, I don’t think he will to you,” she tilted her head. “Why not convince him in my stead?”

“And what exactly are you plotting?” Yu asked, suddenly joining in on the fun. Both Rise and Yosuke looked delighted to see him join them on the dance floor, even if he seemed a little uncomfortable at first. 

“Nothing at all,” Rise said in a sing song voice. “I was just complimenting Yosuke’s dancing. He does seem to be doing a very good job, don’t you think, darling?”

Yu’s eyes trailed over his boyfriend, and she could tell he definitely approved. “I was just thinking it’s such a shame he never gets a chance to really let loose, you know?” Yu let out a sigh, while Yosuke grinned at him. 

“It’s not such a bad idea, is it?” he asked, and they could both tell by the way Yu’s eyes melted as he looked at him that he was about to cave.

Yosuke reached over and placed his hands on Yu’s hips, guiding him through a few motions, which caused an adorable flush to form on Yu’s face. “I suppose it can’t hurt,” he mumbled, and Rise and Yosuke gave each other a high five while he rolled his eyes. Soon, however, he was moving smoother on the dance floor, and Rise couldn’t help but laugh as they all danced together. No one at the bar seemed to pay them any mind, even as they continued to dance into the next song.


End file.
